I have released my Top-30 Royals Prospects to watch out for in the upcoming 2024 Minor League season. As with any prospect list, there are always some intriguing players in the Minor Leagues who just missed the cut.
In this post, I am going to look at four prospects in the Royals’ farm system who didn’t quite make my Top 30 but should be worth watching nonetheless. All four prospects come from Latin America originally and at this time last year were playing in other organizations. Thus, I am still getting a sense of what their outlook could be in 2024 and beyond.
Let’s take a look at those four players, why they are intriguing, and what Royals fans should be looking out for from them in this upcoming season.
Derlin Figueroa, OF/UTL
Figueroa came over from the Dodgers organization in the Ryan Yarbrough trade at the August Trade Deadline. While Devin Mann was the more well-known prospect (he was a non-roster invitee to Spring Training), Figueroa possesses more long-term upside.
Many scouts have likened Figueroa’s projection the Houston’s Yordan Alvarez in the sense that Figueroa is long, athletic, and possesses a lot of natural power at the plate.
The only concern with this projection is that Figueroa really is not a natural defensive player, whether it’s in the infield or outfield. Thus, a lot of his value may come from his bat, much like Alvarez, who’s primarily a designated hitter with the Astros.
Figueroa started slow last year in the Complex League with the Dodgers but he was on fire when he moved to Surprise to play with the Royals complex league team.
In 11 games and 44 plate appearances, he slashed .571/.659/1.029 which included three home runs and 14 runs scored. For context, his wRC+ was 296 with the Royals, a major upgrade from the 96 wRC+ he posted in 113 plate appearances with the Dodgers’ complex league squad.
Even though his numbers with the Dodgers last year weren’t eye-popping, when put together with his Royals numbers, they look much more impressive, as I mentioned in a Tweet yesterday.
There’s still some considerable risk with Figueroa as a prospect.
Reports from his time with the Dodgers mentioned his early struggles with pitch recognition and some of his mechanics, especially with his hand placement, are a bit questionable and could get exposed as he faces better pitching (though David Gerth of “Down on the Farm” is optimistic hitting coordinator Drew Saylor can do his magic with Figueroa).
Despite these concerns, in terms of pure upside and ceiling, Figueroa may be one of the Royals’ most intriguing prospects to watch in 2024 and he could jump into the Top 30 of most Royals prospect lists by midseason, much like Austin Charles a year ago.
Roni Cabrera, OF
While Cole Ragans ended up being the initial prize in the Aroldis Chapman trade with the Rangers, Cabrera was another prospect the Royals acquired from Texas who possesses an intriguing blend of ceiling and risk.
Even JJ Picollo mentioned shortly after the trade that Cabrera was a prospect with some upside, though he was a long way away from making an impact at the Major League level.
If there was one knock on Dayton Moore during his tenure as Royals GM, it was that he was less likely to nab younger guys like Cabrera in trades (he tended to prefer prospects who were closer to debuting in the majors). The fact that Picollo also made sure to acquire someone like Cabrera is a sign that Picollo is operating a lot differently than his former boss.
Cabrera cooled down a bit in the Dominican Summer League after moving to the Royals as his wRC+ went from 177 in 69 plate appearances with the Rangers to 104 in 70 plate appearances with the Royals. This also included his BB/K ratio going from 1.86 with Texas to 0.37 with Kansas City.
On the other hand, putting his numbers together from both stints helps Cabrera’s 2023 season look a lot more encouraging: .292/.410/.504 slash; two home runs; 17 RBI; and 7 SB in 38 games and 139 plate appearances. Also, he produced a 0.77 BB/K ratio overall, which is pretty impressive, especially for a player who turned 18 on July 31st.
Furthermore, Cabrera’s tools, especially on the hitting end, certainly stand out in the limited tape on Cabrera, which mostly highlights his time as a player before signing with the Rangers in 2022.
There’s at the very least some Edward Olivares potential with Cabrera (albeit, hopefully, with better defense). However, the Olivares comparison may be more of a floor, as he has the potential to have an even higher ceiling, especially if he can make progress in the Complex League this season.
Deivis Nadal, 2B/OF
Speaking of Olivares, Nadal comes over from the Pirates organization, as Pittsburgh traded the 21-year-old utility player to acquire the 28-year-old Venezuelan outfielder.
Nadal is more of the traditional Royals prospect: a lot of athleticism; defensive versatility; and great speed on the basepaths; but questionable hit tool. Nadal’s profile as a prospect feels very similar to prospects like Lucius Fox and Samad Taylor, who both were acquired in trades with other organizations (Tampa Bay and Toronto, respectively).
The Dominican-born prospect hasn’t advanced above low-A ball, where he’s primarily played the past couple of seasons. The .212 average and 33% K rate aren’t really promising, especially for a guy who was repeating Low-A ball. On the other hand, his BB/K ratio was palatable at 0.46 (a 12-point improvement from 2022) and his wRC+ was 101, a 16-point improvement from the previous season.
He also stole 33 bases on 37 attempts in Low-A ball last year. Thus, not only does Nadal sport tremendous speed, but he’s efficient when it comes to swiping bags as well, which is just as important.
It’s not just stealing bags either where Nadal’s speed shines. Check out this inside-the-park home run he had for the Bradenton Marauders (the Pirates’ Low-A team) in September.
The Royals’ hitting development team has had success with raw, but talented utility players before, with Tyler Tolbert being the most recent example.
Don’t be surprised if Nadal turns some heads and surprises some Royals fans and prospect experts in High-A Quad Cities this year (his likely destination).
Rodolfo Duran, C
Duran was one of the more surprising non-roster invitees to Spring Training, as the former Yankees and Phillies prospect was signed by the Royals as a Minor League free agent shortly before Christmas.
It’s always common to see any organization, the Royals especially, invite multiple catchers to spring camp, especially with the plethora of pitchers who need work. Usually, those catchers are there only for a short time and are promptly sent back to Minor League camp once cuts begin.
Duran though may be more than just that and could be another catcher who could have a breakout with the Royals, much like Freddy Fermin a season ago.
The 25-year-old Dominican-born catcher is an older prospect, but his development has been stunted due to injury. As recently as 2020, he was the 19th-rated prospect in the Phillies system, with MLB Pipeline saying the following about him and his projection, which focused primarily on his defense:
“His calling cards, however, are his catch and throw skills. He still needs to work on his overall receiving, but he blocks well and calls a good game. He also can shut down a running game, having thrown out 40 percent of potential basestealers in his career. The Phillies are excited to get him back healthy so he can start to show if he’s a power-hitting backup or has the chance to be a big league regular.”
“2020 Phillies Top Prospects: No. 19, Rodolfo Duran”; MLB Pipeline
It seems like Duran’s defense carried over to his time with the Yankees, as he played 62 games in Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. This Tweet from Dugout Station, a Yankees prospect-oriented site, highlights not only some of his defensive numbers but also showcases through video his sneaky power potential for a catcher.
Duran slashed .252/.329/.444 in 240 plate appearances last season with the RailRiders, which included not only a 91 wRC+ but a 0.42 BB/K ratio, 8 home runs, and an ISO of .192. For context, Fermin slashed .270/.365/.480 with 15 home runs and a 123 WRC+ in his first full season in Triple-A Omaha. However, Fermin did this as a 27-year-old, which is two years older than Duran’s Triple-A debut in 2023.
It wouldn’t be surprising to see Duran post Fermin-esque offensive and defensive numbers in Omaha this year, despite being a year younger.
This makes Duran an intriguing backup possibility for the Royals this year and in 2025, especially if Picollo should trade away Fermin at the August Trade Deadline to add some much-needed prospect depth to the Royals’ farm system.
Photo Credit: Cortesía Meridiano.
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